The Perils of Man Delayed To Early 2014

You may be wondering what is going on with the upcoming free iOS adventure game The Perils of Man, which is being developed by IF Games and designed by Bill Tiller and Gene Mocsy of Autumn Moon.

Its previous release date of October 2013 came and went, and the official Facebook page has been surprisingly quiet about the situation.

The game's FAQ has recently been updated, indicating that the game has been delayed to early 2014. However, there's no word on whether they still plan on releasing the game in two episodes as originally planned.

Al Lowe and Josh Mandel Quit Replay Games

Leisure Suit Larry creator Al Lowe and co-writer Josh Mandel have left Replay Games due to the abusive and destructive behavior of Replay founder and CEO Paul Trowe.

As you know, last year he sabotaged fellow Kickstarter campaigns with false press releases and hurtful and deceitful comments (both under his own name and possibly under an assumed name).

Unfortunately, that behavior hasn't stopped, as he posted some hurtful words and unfounded claims at the SpaceVenture Kickstarter page in October. That behavior caused several Replay volunteers to criticize Paul's behavior publicly, leading Paul to fire them and ban them from the Replay forums. Worse, he insulted and publicly outed one volunteer as a transsexual woman (her name has been omitted from the twitter post to save her from any more emotional duress).

Additionally, Kotaku has posted an article that details Paul Trowe's arrest in October 2012 for showing a sex video to an underage teenage girl.

Al Lowe has stated that his leaving the company had to do with these and other reasons. Replay Games still owns the rights to make Leisure Suit Larry games for now, but if they do decide to make more, it will be without Al Lowe or Josh Mandel.

I would like to wish Al and Josh (as well as the Replay volunteers and employees who were affected by this) the best of luck in the future.

Jason The Greek on Kickstarter

Jason The Greek is a Kickstarter campaign for a 2D animated point-and-click adventure game inspired by Monkey Island, Sam and Max Hit the Road, Discworld and the Hector Badge of Carnage series, set in Ancient Greece. If the Kickstarter is successful, the tentative release date for the game is the summer of 2014 with a DRM-free release for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

The campaign is seeking £10,000, and they are nearly there with only about £2,000 and 61 hours to go.  A DRM free version of the game, and a thank-you in the credits, is available for Windows, Mac, or Linux for only £5 for the next 80 pledgers (and £8 after that).  In addition, you can get an early alpha test version of the game at the £10 tier, an alpha and a beta test version at the £15 tier, a DVD copy of the game and poster at the £20 tier, an in-game statue bust of yourself at the £30 tier, and many more goodies at the higher tiers.  So, if you're interested in a classic style point-and-click adventure with an Ancient Greek twist, then choose a tier and support the Jason The Greek Kickstarter.

Game of Thrones and Borderlands Series By Telltale

At the Spike TV VGX awards, Telltale has announced two new episodic series.  The first is based on the HBO series (which itself is based on a series of novels) called Game of Thrones.  The teaser trailer can be viewed here.

The second series is based on Gearbox's Borderlands series, and is titled Tales From The Borderlands.  The teaser trailer for this one shows a bit more, including some new characters, and some dialog by Handsome Jack.

No release date for either title has been set yet, but IGN is reporting that both Game of Thrones and Tales From The Borderlands are set for release in 2014.

Al Emmo Enhanced Is Out Now

Himalaya Studios, the commercial game label of AGDI Interactive, the team behind many well received free Sierra fan remakes, has released an enhanced version of their first commercial game, Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine.

The enhanced version includes a new voice actor for Al Emmo, improved 2D cutscenes, a new scoring and achievement system, and more. 

It's available now for $10 USD from the Himalaya Store and Desura. It's also up on Steam Greenlight, if you wish to vote for it to be included on the Steam marketplace.

Broken Sword: The Serpent's Curse Part I is Out Now

Part I of Broken Sword: The Serpent's Curse, the fifth installment in the Broken Sword series, is now out for PC, Mac, and Linux, and will be arriving soon on Android, iOS, and PlayStation Vita.

For those who don't know, this installment, which was funded by crowdfunding through Kickstarter, returns the series to it's roots, in that it is presented in a 2D style with hand drawn backgrounds (although the characters are animated in a 3D style).

The entire game (including Part I now and Part II when it's released) can be purchased now from GOG or Steam. Part II, which will conclude the game, is scheduled to be released early next year.

GOG.com Insomnia Sale

GOG.com is having a very interesting sale. They have 101 games on sale for up to 80% off, but there are limited quantities available for each game, and when all the quantities available are sold, the next game is offered.

It's a very unusual sale, and quite clever, plus there have been a few adventure games available, so I thought I'd mention it here.  Right now, Jack Keane 2 is on sale for 60% off, but at the time of this writing there are only 24 left, so it'll go quick before the next deal is up.